Sante...

Monday, January 6, 2014

Happy New Year

For the past three years, I've started out the New Years with a Cleanse. I'm usually looking forward to it after too much eating and drinking during the holidays.

I use the same supplements, Total Body Cleanse by Renew Life that I get from Whole Foods. It involves taking ten supplements a day, five in the morning and five in the evening for 14 days, that's 140 pills, and it's hard to swallow them sometimes. During those 14 days, I also go caffeine and alcohol free as well as follow a vegan and gluten free diet. The first year was hard, I really had to look for foodstuff to substitute my regular diet, it appeared there were no foodstuff to be had, but slowly I've discovered grains, nuts, fruits and vegetables that not only fill you up but satisfy you just as well as a steak, without the gut ache or leaving you comatose.

Some people have asked why I do it, it's not that I'm trying to lose weight or that I have stomach ailments or anything health related, it's because I want to keep it way. One friend said her doctor told her it was unnecessary, um hello… he sells diabetic, blood pressure, cholesterol meds, of course he doesn't want you doing that.

I like to think that by cleansing I set a benchmark of wellness, and it teaches me how to maintain or obtain it, especially since it's something I can control. Happy New Year!

Quick Stir-fry

Replace Soy sauce with Tamari (gluten free - tastes like soy sauce) for the dressing (sauce)

I get this "bowl" of ready to use veg at Trader Joe's - I know it's not earth friendly, but one thing at a time.

Squeeze out excess water from the tofu (firm), cut into cubes, sprinkle a little salt and fry in veg or olive oil

When it's golden brown, flip and cook the other side then remove from pan

In the same pan, add a little more oil, add the veg, salt and pepper and move it around a bit

Once the veg has cooked a few minutes, add the tofu back and drizzle in the dressing; sesame oil, tamari, water, honey, garlic and ginger (I like to use my microplane so that you don't have chunks) - I should really bottle this stuff.

Let the veg, tofu and dressing all get acquainted and the dressing thicken

Serve with brown rice and if you didn't use all the dressing, drizzle on top of the rice, it's that good!

Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Soothing Chicken Soup

My mom taught me the restorative powers of chicken soup. She made the traditional Korean chicken soup with whole chicken, sticky rice, garlic, ginger, and red dried dates. She would sometimes add ginseng if we were under the weather. My mom always made this soup and with such ease, she simply put all the ingredients into a pot and let it simmer all day, I remember the dried dates bobbing in the pot. Then a bowl of shredded chicken with rice in broth was presented with chopped scallions, salt and lots of black pepper. I haven't made my mom's soup, I think secretly, I don't want to ruin my childhood memory of it, instead I'm making my own memories for my kids. So, whenever I roast chicken whether whole or pieces, I am always thinking past the initial meal to the secondary soup. I always roast chicken with skin on/bone in (the skin keeps the meat moist and the bones add flavor).

Chopped carrot, parsley, celery, onion, and bay leaf

Add chicken breast bone and the aromatics and cover with water. The resulting broth is amazing!

Since I will strain the aromatics, I steam carrots right on top of the soup

I cook Ditalini noodles separately and add them to the soup

Strain the aromatics

Add to broth, the meat from the bone, steamed carrots, cooked pasta, and salt to taste.
I hope someday she will tweak it and call it her own

This is one soup that doesn't have to be pureed for his picky palette

Friday, January 18, 2013

Glorious Soup

My husband and I argue about will power. What we could or would give up or how long we could endure not having something we love... and we're constantly testing ourselves... on and on, we go at it. As for me, I can give up almost anything for a month, except soup. He tells me that if he took away my soups, I would be a shell of a person, and it's probably true.

"Soups puts the heart at ease,

Calms down the violence of hunger,

Eliminates the tension of the day, and

Awakens and refines the appetite"

-Auguste Escoffier

One of my favorite soup is the West African Peanut Soup, I first had it at a local McMenamins. Our kids hate the place, limited menu and really slow service, but my husband and I love the small batch craft beers and the peanut soup... Here's a vegetarian version.

Sauté diced 1/2 white or red onion (whatever you have) about 4 minutes, give it a turn or two and add minced 3 or more cloves of garlic. Stir in spices 1/2 tsp curry powder, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper and 1 tbsp or more chili powder (you can make your own - 1 tbsp ground cumin, 2 tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp cayenne pepper, 1 tsp paprika, 1 tsp ground oregano).

Add 3 tbsp of tomato paste, or a couple of big squeezes out of the tube and 1/2 cup of chopped tomatoes and give it a stir and cook for about 3-4 minutes, add 3 cups of vegetable broth, turn the heat to med-high and let it come to a boil. Add 2 big spoonfuls of peanut butter (chunky or creamy), taste and add more 1 tbsp at a time to your taste. Add cubed 1/2 yam or sweet potato and 2 small or 1 large yukon gold potato (you can add carrots, turnips, parsnips, etc). Bring back to a boil, turn heat to medium-low and cook for about 20 minutes, check to see if the potatoes are soft and if the soup is too thick, thin it by adding a little water, add salt as needed.

Garnish with chopped peanuts, green onions and cilantro and feel the glory of soup!

Tuesday, January 8, 2013

Chillin with Veggie Chili

Every January (for the past 3 years), I start the year with a little cleanse. My husband dreads it... "not even a glass of wine?" he whines... as he pours himself a glass of Adelsheims 2009 Elizabeth's Reserve Pinot Noir... "oh, what's so bad about a prawn, it's not red meat?" again he whines as he takes a bite out of the sweet tender morsel lathered in freshly grated horse radish cocktail sauce, and it's not even him on the cleanse... I guess gluttony loves company.

The first two weeks of the new year, I give up wheat, dairy, and meat. I avoid caffeine and alcohol for the entire month. It's a nice little break for the body and soul, and a good chance to load up on fruits, veggies, grains, and nuts. The one drawback is that I am cloistered in my house, which isn't too bad considering the 30 deg temps and howling winds in the NW and it gives me a chance to update this blog. I may venture out, but I'm never far from home, out of fear of being stuck "out" at mealtime - there's not many good choices unless you're stuck at Whole Foods. I do love the challenge of excluding items from my daily eating life, it's creepily fun.

Here's my version of Veggie Chili

Cube eggplant and toss with olive oil and sea salt (be sure to add enough olive oil, 4-5 tablespoons), bake in 350 deg for 30 minutes (I've lined and oiled my baking sheet with aluminum foil so that the eggplant doesn't stick and no baking sheet to clean).

I'm using tins of black and white beans (that's cans to you - it's the Downton Abbey influence)

Zest half a lemon, more if you like (I got this great bowl and lemons from a beautiful friend, thanks Kellie) and chop some cilantro, 6-8 sprigs.

Chop, zucchini, red bell pepper, onion, garlic, pepper (serrano or jalepeno) - for some heat, do not discard seeds - (I left half in and removed the other). You can use any veggies you have on hand, I just happened to have these left over from a veggie curry.

Put a pot (I use a dutch oven) on the stove on medium-high heat, and drizzle some olive oil (about 2 tablespoons), add onion - why do onions smell so good when they are cooking? cook for about 4 minutes, until translucent, add garlic, cook 1 minute, add the rest of the veggies including the lemon zest and juice of 1/2 of a lemon, then add the spices, 1 tsp cumin, 1 tsp of fennel seeds, 1 tsp of oregano and 1 Tablespoon of chili powder. Toss the veggies and spices a bit... and cook for about 5 minutes. Open a tin (yes, I am done with cans forever!) of chopped or cubed or whole tomatoes, if using whole tomatoes then smash them with your hands right into the pot (that's the fun part), add tomatoes and the juices to the pot and cook for about 20 minutes. Add the roasted eggplant (I know everything taste better roasted but these you can eat as a snack - try it), beans, and cilantro and cook for about 5 minutes, until the beans are heated through. Of course for those of you not on a "cleanse," can top a bowl of this chili with sour cream and grated cheese, but you won't miss it if you don't.

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Grant Achatz's Alinea

We leave for NYC in a couple of days, and my mind is filled with midtown Michelin starred restaurants, downtown small farm to table hole in the walls, lower east side's seedy bars you enter through a secret door inside a hot dog shop, uptown rooftop wine bars with twinkling lights overlooking the city, dumbo taverns where you drink beer before noon, ever present pain de quotidiens and all the momofukus in between. After all, the city's symbol is an apple, you're supposed to take a bite out of the big apple, but the dilemma is when you only have a few days, actually I operate in meals (we only have 8 meals!), you have to pick the choice bites. I've written and re-written our food itinerary a few dozen times in the past weeks.

So to take my mind off this trip, I've decided to share with you our trip to Chicago last fall. Yes, it was to re-visit a fabulous "big" city where people are still "small" town, where glass skyscrapers meet the waterway and run into the vast Lake Michigan, where beautiful people stroll in and out of envious shops on Michigan Avenue, and where deep dish pizza reins supreme. But those were disguises for the real reason I wanted to go to Chicago... why I had to go to Chicago; Grant Achatz's molecular gastronomy restaurant, Alinea.

Chef Achatz's food has been exalted, criticized but ultimately voted one of the best in the world. Alinea took the #6 spot on the coveted San Pellegrino's "The World Best 50 Restaurants" 2011 list - that's #6 in the World, that's a lot of restaurants to beat out. To fully appreciate it, it is best to leave your preconceived notions at their automated sliding doors and let him take you on a journey between art and modern cuisine. He manipulates seasonal ingredients through flavors, textures, temperatures, aroma, even your memories and then serves the courses with custom made service pieces as props in his magnificently orchestrated performance to provide you with a culinary experience that you get to keep as a souvenir in your treasure box of food memories well after the show has ended.

Sept 25, 2011 Menu